Qualified Immunity
The Fourteenth Amendment guarantees "equal protection of the laws," a principle fundamental to American democracy. Yet, qualified immunity—a judicially created doctrine shielding public officials from liability—stands in direct contradiction to this promise.
It does not protect citizens equally; it protects the government from accountability. Worse, in an era of disinformation and electoral dysfunction, it provides the tools to undermine our democracy.
At its core, qualified immunity grants government officials—primarily law enforcement—a legal shield against lawsuits, unless plaintiffs can prove their rights were violated in a way that has been "clearly established" in previous case law. The problem? The courts have demonstrated that this threshold was set with the intent to be ambiguous, to protect themselves and not the people.
The issue becomes even more insidious when viewed through the lens of electoral politics. Because qualified immunity disproportionately affects certain populations—particularly communities of color—it distorts democratic representation.
Law enforcement policies that disproportionately target minority communities go unchecked because victims have no legal recourse.
In a system where the Electoral College already dilutes the political power of urban, diverse populations in favor of rural, less diverse ones, qualified immunity exacerbates the imbalance.
It effectively sets the tools for the government to suppress certain voters while shielding itself from consequences.
This is not abstract theory—it's happening now. States with high-profile police abuses (George Floyd in Minnesota, Breonna Taylor in Kentucky) are also states where political representation is skewed by the Electoral College.
The same system that allows minority votes to be structurally weaker also permits law enforcement to operate without accountability.
This is not equal protection; it is government-sanctioned impunity.
James Madison warned that tyranny begins when power goes unchecked. In an era of rampant disinformation, where many Americans question the legitimacy of elections and institutions, trust in government is already fragile.
Qualified immunity accelerates this erosion by proving, time and again, that officials are not held to the same standards as the citizens they serve.
This is not just a legal issue; it is a democratic crisis. When citizens lack legal recourse against state abuses, faith in democracy crumbles. And when faith in democracy crumbles, authoritarian alternatives begin to look appealing. This is how democratic backsliding begins—not with grand declarations, but with small, technical rulings that quietly strip citizens of their rights.
If democracy is to survive, qualified immunity must go. It is not a safeguard; it is a threat.
And in a country built on the idea that no one is above the law, its very existence is unconstitutional.
BRENDAN RYAN
Salt Lake City
"Reverse Gear," March 6 Online
SLC, Summit County, unions, every single city and town in Utah ... who hasn't Senate President Stuart Adams and the Legislature picked a fight with this week?
NOSEITALLINC
Via Instagram
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